Ultramarine (Sportarobbie)
by ElongatedStingy
Summary: hiya! welcome to the ragingly gay subtext of a wonderful childrens show. lots of fluff. and warning- there's mentions of some sad, deep stuff. This takes place 4 years after the canon show, btw. The kids are preteens now, but due to the lack of outside influence, haven't changed a lot. (but thanks to pixel they know what memes are hehe)
1. and so it begins

The massive airship floated lazily through the air, treading the clouds softly. Sportacus sprang awake inside, at the exact moment he always did. He smiled as he flipped out of his bed, admiring the unobstructed view from above the clouds. He jumped around his minimalistic airship, stepping on certain buttons to pull out his counter and pantry from the wall. He plucked out raspberries, blueberries, and plums from his arsenal of sportscandy, and juggled them briefly before dunking them into a mixing bowl. He spun it on his finger like a basketball instead of normally mixing them, and tossed it upwards. He grabbed a spoon and did a backflip to catch it in midair. He smiled down at his breakfast, briefly noticing the familiar color combination before digging in; indigo, purple, and crimson.

* * *

_'Once upon a time, there was a fabulous villain. But, he had an enchantment upon him of a lazy sort, which could only be broken by mass consumption of sportscandy and pointless aerobics. He was locked away in an underground lair guarded by a billboard that barely passed for the actual horizon. A single brave slightly-above-average hero had attempted to free him from this so-called "prison", but never prevailed. He stayed in the dark lair in the comfiest chair of the deepest room, totally not lonely and waiting for his true love and true love's first kiss...' _Robbie scoffed, and tossed the notebook behind him, standing up dramatically. _Plap_. "I'm no GOOD at writing! It sounds TOO MUCH like a DUMB FAIRY-TALE BOOK cliché or something. What a load of CRAP!" He marched over to his exit hatch, and flourished open the door. _**{SomeBODY ONCE TOLD ME-!} **_Robbie scowled, rubbing a squeaky finger in his ear to get rid of the noise he thought he heard. He pranced off towards the town to see if Sportacrap was there, so he could scheme up a new plan to thwart him in his plague of healthiness. When he approached the town square, he didn't hear any overdramatized fwooshing noises, so he assumed it was safe. It was a relatively cool autumn day; at first glance, most of the kids seemed to be occupied by their own activities, and actually quiet for once. Robbie was walking peacefully, enjoying the fresh air (although he would NEVER admit it.) Suddenly, he heard a shrieking wail pierce the air like a dagger.

_**"BUT IT'S MIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIINE!"**_

"GAH!" Robbie yelled to no one in particular. "Do NOT startle me like that!" He exasperatedly located source of the noise, practically fuming. There, he saw Trixie, hanging upside down from a tree branch and dangling Stingy's piggy above his frantic reach. Stingy's whole body was wracked by hiccupping sobs. "M..mine..! P-p-piggy!" he whimpered helplessly. Robbie huffed, and marched over to the crime scene. As if on cue, the tree branch began to crack. Not an ounce of fear crossed Trixie's face; she just grinned devilishly. "**YEET**!" she screeched, pitching Piggy straight up into the air and hurling herself off the tree. Luckily, she landed unhurt, but Stingy was too busy caterwauling at the top of his lungs and choking on his tears. Familiar fwooshing noises filled the air as everyone's favorite blue sports boy flipped right into the situation. "What's the matter, Stingy!?" he immediately inquired. At this point, Stingy had forgotten how to form coherent words, so he just released a banshee shriek and pointed to Piggy falling through the air. On a sudden, unexpected reflex, Robbie was the one who lunged for it, to everyone's surprise. He soared through the air and caught it, just in time, but landed haphazardly in the arms of none other than Sportakook himself. Time seemed to freeze in that moment as they locked eyes with each other. Robbie found it awkward, whereas Sportaboi found it amusing. "Uhhhmmm... here's your pig, kid," Robbie stuttered, obviously flustered by his landing. Sportaflop grinned slightly, and it seemed he almost hesitated to put him down. Stingy, scowling and hugging his piggy protectively, slapped Trixie. Hard. Sportacus gasped. "STINGY!" he scolded, "that's no way to treat your friend, now IS it?" He looked genuinely disappointed, until his expression was broken by Robbie butting in and high-fiving Stingy. "You've GOT to admit, Sportaflop, she de-SERVED it!" he chortled. Stingy giggled and skipped away, humming his personal anthem (which he called "The Mine Song", to nobody's surprise.) With the kids gone, Sportacus turned to Robbie and clapped a hand on his shoulder. "Hehe, I knew you weren't all bad," he said gleefully. Robbie grunted in protest, crossing his arms and frowning, but Sportaboi just smiled warmly as he jumped back up onto his ladder. He looked back, directly at Robbie, to comment, "I'm proud of you." He then ascended gracefully into the sky, and Robbie stood, staring up into the clouds. If somebody was witnessing this from the outside, they would have been the only ones to notice he had a perculiar twinkle in his eye.

Robbie continued on his walk, taking a deep breath of the fresh air. That seemed to clear his mind. Approximately 6 seconds later, a thought dawned on him. "What am I still DOING out in FRESH AIR?! BLEAUGH!" He escaped back to his lair, dramatically sagging down in his fluffy orange chair. Something wasn't sitting right in his stomach, so he decided to monologue. "I'm the villain. The NUMBER ONE VILLAIN of LAZYTOWN! Why, why, wHY would I actually HELP someone?! Especially that MINIATURE YELLOW BUSINESSMAN!" He huffed, looking around him at the empty blue-gray room as if he was expecting a response. "What am I supposed to DO?! I'm supposed to be LAZY! Lazytown is supposed to be LAZY! Why on EARTH am I being-" he nearly choked on the word- "NICE?!" He sat and pondered for a moment on this troublesome subject. "AHA! I know what it is!" He triumphantly pointed a finger in the air. "It's Sportabutt! He's been here for FIVE YEARS NOW! That's MUCH longer than any of the others! Maybe he's... he's INFLUENCING me! GAAAH!" Robbie flinched at the very notion. "I want to get RID of him! But...it's too much FUN coming up with SCHEMES against him... I actually don't want to stop..." Goodness, he should spend more time solving his emotions. Actually, he's _Robbie Rotten! _He can't ruin his reputation. He whipped up in a flourish, deciding he was going to make some cake to distract himself (per the usual.) As he haphazardly threw the ingredients into his Cake Contraption 3000, he subconsciously started grumbling to himself about Sportacus, enunciating with comical gesticulations. "That good-for-nothing goody-two-shoes, all flippy-floppy, and healthy, and strong, and enthusiastic, and fwooshy, and annoying, and really muscular...and acrobatic and kabwooshy and over-energetic little-" _Ding!_ The giant oven machine produced a haphazardly-formed cake, with purple and maroon icing. "Ah, PERfect!" Robbie exclaimed. He sat down and delved in. For some reason, however, he couldn't get that stupid, tender, accented voice out of his head.

_"I'm proud of you."_


	2. blushing and also fangirl squeals

Robbie aroused from an abstract dream of blue and white; he couldn't remember what it was about. An uncharacteristic feeling of euphoria hung in the air as the dream fizzled out of existence. He stretched overdramatically, popping his muscles like glowsticks. To be quite honest, he really didn't want to get out of his favorite chair. Therefore, he didn't. He slumped there, enjoying the soft, fluffy, orange tendrils of pure comfort. Eventually, his mind began wandering; specifically, back to his mysterious dream. "Hmm," he said aloud, "now WHAT could I have DREAMED about? Blue and white..." He scrunched his face up comically, shutting his eyes tight and wrinkling his brow. "AHA! CLOUDS," he yelled triumphantly! "But... I was- (he made an exuberant retching noise)- DE-LIGHTED when I woke up. And I think clouds are dumb. So, it COULDN'T be that..." He scratched his chin for a minute, thinking of a solution. "What do I know...that is BLUE and WHITE...and makes me HAPPY?" A realization abruptly hit him. "SPORTAFLOP!" he blurted. Quickly, he slapped a hand over his mouth; even though he was alone, he still didn't want to verbally admit that Sportaflop did, in fact, make him happy. He hopped up from his chair and started pacing again. "Gah! I need another SCHEME to get RID of that overathletic jumping bean! I can't go around feeling...actual EMOTIONS! It would RUIN my reputation!" he fretted. "I'll need...INSPIRATION! Maybe those darn KIDS can give me some..." He pulled down his periscope with a theatrical motion, and surveyed the town and its happenings. The first person he spotted was Stephanie. He huffed, exasperated. "Did it have to be PINKY?" Reluctantly, he watched her. She was practically glowing; her joyful expression was almost brighter than her blinding outfit. "That's no surprise," Robbie commented sardonically. There was a jump rope slung over her shoulder. She skipped toward the basketball court, grabbing the attention of the rest of the gang. "Hey guys! Guess what I brought today!" Everyone exclaimed happily when she pulled out her jump rope. Robbie just rolled his eyes and let go of his periscope. "Why isn't anything INSPIRING happening?" He marched over to his Wall of Disguises in another attempt to get ideas. "It's Disguise Time!"

He began his routine prance past the tubes. The first held his astronaut suit. "Hmm, too spacey." Next, a floofy wedding dress. (He disregarded brief fantasies of Sportaboi.) "Too lacy!" When he looked at the next one, he yelped; there was a monstrous creature suit that had 87 different faces. Or was it 88? Robbie shuddered. "Too facey;" he said, "why do I even have that?" He quickly moved on to the next one- a racecar driver complete with a helmet. "Too race-y." Per the usual, when he laid eyes on the final one, he yelled "PERFECT!" In this case, the master disguise was... an anime schoolgirl uniform. With a pigtail wig, a bright red bow, and cute nerdy glasses included, of course. He pulled out his control panel, pressing a button and spinning into his costume (cackling evilly all the while.) "I'll be a little girl with an EVEN SWEETER and SUPER ADORBLE best friend... who's a ROBOT...or something! And I still get to be evil because I'm going to PUT HER IN DANGER! Once Sportabutt falls in love with her, of course!" He hesitated a bit before adding, in a small voice, "...and I want to see if he's capable of loving m-I mean, people." He quickly descended off of his platform back to the main area, in an attempt to get in character. He tried to skip around gleefully, but ended up popping his back. Tried to smile- his face muscles hurt. "Hmm... I THINK I need a CUTENESS tutor." An idea sparked when he laid eyes on his periscope. "Pinky!" he exclaimed triumphantly. He heard her singing an energetic song through the periscope speaker, and scowled, until he realized this was PERFECT behavior that he should be replicating. He grimaced his way through the upbeat melody. _"Hanging out with your very best friends, the fun will never end! Hop, skip, jump, jumprope! Everything is cool!" _"Huh, I haven't heard that one before. How are they STILL thinking up new LYRICS?!" He almost got lost in watching their performance and taking mental notes (including grievances.) He realized suddenly that he still hadn't created an actual "friend" to aid him in his scheme. He looked in his spare parts closet, where he threw all his mismatched pieces and old scheme inventions. His face lit up as he saw a humanoid figure, slumped over against the back wall. He dove into his disorganized stash, and dragged out Rottenella.

He pondered to himself, his inventing brain hard at work as he sized her up. "I'll have to install a VOICEBOX, but that'll be EASY. I need to make HER a disguise too, so NOBODY will recognize her! He ran over to his Inventor Microwave and threw in various things; rhinestones, glitter, and a can of purple dye. One thing was missing, however; something to actually form it into a cute dress. "Now WHERE would I have a DRESS?" He gazed around his lair melodramatically, his face lighting up when he saw the wedding dress, suspended in its orange tube. "EUREKA!" he shouted. He ran over and retrieved it, lobbing it into the microwave with the other supplies and pulling the lever. It rattled, and clanged, and spewed out steam. _Ding!_ Ecsatic, Robbie pulled out his creation. It was a simple flowy dress, with a minimalistic star outline made of black rhinestones adorning it. The skirt had a sparkly sheen beneath its tulle. The fabric was now a wispy lavender, to match Rottenella's pretty purple style. There was a black belt dividing the dress and giving it an accent. He ran and borrowed some black leggings from his fashion closet. "EVERYONE has to have a nice LEGGING STASH!" he exclaimed with glee. After laying out the outfit on his disguise control center, he picked up Rottenella's limp body and set it in the correct place. "It feels strange having SOMEONE ELSE actually use my disguise machine...but it's ALL FOR MY SPORTAFLOP!" Robbie gasped. "UM! I MEAN! FOR MY SCHEME AGAINST SPORTAFLOP!" He blushed furiously at his mishap. He smiled once Rottenella's outfit was successfully on her. "You look MUCH sweeter now!" He grinned and laughed villainously to himself. He ran back to his scrap closet and pulled out a couple of electric contraptions, tossing them in the microwave too. Soon enough, he had a quite fitting voicebox for Rottenella. After making some robotic changes to her anatomy (which included a sparkly anime-eye module, a better wind-up mechanism, and wavy hair,) she was completed and ready to go. "With my new additions, she won't turn off unexpectedly, too! Additionally, NOBODY can tell she's actually an ANDROID! You're successful once again, Robbie!" He cackled, and wound up the turn key to turn her on. She mechanically came to life, her joints moving like a believable human as she stood up. She was perfect.

Robbie squealed with joy. "It's time to test your voice mechanism, Rottenella! She raised a single eyebrow, almost incredulously. "R...ruh...Rob-bie Rot-ten." he cooed to her. "Can you say Rob-bie Rot-ten?" She exhaled exasperatedly. "There's no need to treat me like a young child, Father. I do, in fact, know about the English language and the rules of grammar. Was it not you who tossed in the dictionary when creating my mechanical mind?" Robbie stood slackjawed. Rottenella giggled in spite of herself, her face finally breaking into a smile. "Also, actually, wait just a second," Robbie interjected. "Did you call me 'Father' just now? Because I am NOT your father." Calmly, Rottenella replied, "According to the definition of the word 'paternal', I can safely conclude that since you have given me life and put a roof over my head, you are my father. If not in a true familial sense, then in an honorary sense." At this, Robbie was nearly tearing up. "You're so SMART!" He suddenly hugged her out of pure pride, and for a moment, his villainous nature melted away. "I'm proud of you!" He almost didn't notice that he'd exactly echoed what Sportacus said to him the day before..._almost. _Rottenella smiled warmly at him, releasing herself from his embrace. "Anyway, knowing you, you've summoned me for a purpose. I appreciate being out in the open instead of collecting dust; therefore, I will gladly help with whatever villainous plan you require me for. After all, it's a small price to pay for salvation." Robbie, who had gotten off track, quickly regained his train of thought. "Ah, yes! My NEWEST master plan! And THIS one is an ETHOLOGICAL approach- instead of outright KICKING him out of Lazytown, I'm LURING him out- with YOU!" He then went on to explain the full nature of his devious plan to her, with her nodding and offering suggestions. "Wait," she interjected once, "won't they remember me if you call me Rottenella? That would surely give us away." Robbie agreed, and asked, "What about just Ella?" She was skeptical about its believablility. "How about Ily? Because Lily is nice, but it is a flower, and I'm an android, not a flower." "Yes! It's great!" Robbie exclaimed. "And it can be your new model- Ily 3000!" They were both very excited to execute their plan. He'd never admit it, but having somebody by his side to talk to about his plans was a really wonderful feeling. After they completed their discussion, they set out for Lazytown to wreak emotional havoc.

They arrived in the town; it had been a couple of hours since Robbie had first woken up, so the kids were no longer playing jump rope; now, they were having a picnic lunch in their treehouse. Along the way, 'Ily' had given him pointers on how to be girly and cute. They chose a name for him, too; Ruby Rosita. It kept his characteristic alliteration, and Ruby sounded like Robbie. They arrived at the base of the treehouse, and Ily called up to the kids. "Yoo-hoo! Is...is anyone up there?" Five curious heads all poked out the window, one by one; and five pairs of eyes lit up with glee. "Hiya!" Stephanie hollered. "Come on in!" Ruby and Ily climbed the ladder and entered the clubhouse. Choruses of "Whoa!", "New kids!", and "Who are they?" filled the room. Ruby spoke up in meticulously practiced anime mannerisms. "Ohayou! Me and my cute best friend are new here! My name is Ruby Rosita, and hers is Ily Ikuni! We really want to make friends, UwU" Robbie winced, wondering if he'd gone too far with the 'UwU' at the end. Ziggy, removing a lollipop from his mouth, piped up excitedly. "Ooh! Ooh! I wanna be your friend! Yay!" The whole gang was smitten; all except for Pixel, who seemed skeptical. He looked at something on his computer bracelet, stood up, and approached them. Studying their outfits and general stature intensely, he came to a conclusion, and remarked, "Ruby, you're awfully flat for an anime girl." Ruby scoffed (cutely.) "N-no I'm not, I'm being perfectly expressive!" He crossed his arms for dramatic effect. Pixel shrugged and went back to the corner, where he was tinkering on some new device. Ruby beckoned Ily to come sit on the windowsill and "look pretty". In actuality, they were trying to think of a way to get Sportacus to come to the treehouse. Ily suddenly silenced him, noticing that Stingy was eyeing them. He melodramatically stood up, brushed off his trousers, and sauntered over to them (his clutch tightening on Piggy when he passed Trixie.) "Greetings, dearest newcomers," he trilled. Out of pure theatricality, Ily replied with just as much flavorful verbiage. "Salutations, my well-versed acquaintance!" She reached out her hand for a handshake, and Stingy blushed a little. "Well-versed? Th-thanks," he squeaked, then regained his composure. "Ahem. I mean, I appreciate your kindhearted compliment." He speed-walked away, and Ily absentmindedly followed him, so they could have a conversation about words. "Well look at them, getting along so well," Ruby whispered under his breath. He huffed and turned up his nose, flinging his head to the side; this threw him off balance from his windowsill perch, and he started to tip over. "GAAH- (he switched to his anime voice)- KYAAAAAAAA!" He tried to grab hold of the windowsill in a frantic flurry of limbs. Although everyone flocked to his cries of distress, nobody was able to catch him in time. He was rocketing towards the ground, counting which of his bones he thought would be broken, and watching his life flash before his eyes. His chair. His lair. Sportakook. Many of his failed plans. The pink nuisance. Sportaflop, again. More schemes. Sportacute's alarmed face. His smile. "No, stop thinking about his darn smile-!" he said, his voice wavering. Sportaboi's smile only grew sweeter in his vision. "About whose smile?" he inquired innocently. At that moment, Robbie realized that this was, in fact, reality. His cheeks went from peach to maraschino cherry in about 5 seconds. Then, because of the overwhelming blood rush to his head, he fainted.


	3. sleepy boi, crying, fruit too

Robbie awoke abruptly and jolted up, seeing a view of cloudy pre-sunset sky against the wacky architecture of Lazytown. "Wha- what happened? How come I'm HERE?" A sparkling voice laughed from behind him. "You fell out of a treehouse window and fainted when you fell into my arms, as far as I know." Robbie whipped around, his eyes wide. "Sportacute-I MEAN UM UH- SPORTAKOOK?!" He buried his face in his hands to hide the returning blush, and nearly fell off the bench they were on. Sportacus laid a hand on Robbie's shoulder to steady him. "Don't go falling places again," he remarked, "although, yes, I will always be there to catch you. Anyway, what's got you so flustered, Robbie? And why did you call me...Sporta-cute?" He hesitated to repeat the last word, a nearly-hopeful twinkle shining in his eye. Robbie screeched inhumanly. "SORRY I UH I DIDN'T MEAN IT UM AHAHA IT WAS AN ACCIDENT I'M CLUMSY WHEN IT COMES TO WORDS HAHAHA-wait, did you say Robbie? You saw past my disguise?!" Sportaflop's expression seemed to dim. "oh, you didn't mean it?...okay..." he said in a small voice. He laughed it off, his energy and charm re-brightening. "And yes, Robbie! You know I always do!" (The emotional tension of the situation was absolutely infuriating.) "On a side note," he added, trying to save the conversation, "I really like what you've done with Rottenella's outfit. You're such a talented designer!" Robbie's blush refused to leave his face. Sportacus started blushing too, but out of anxiety, tried to find a quick way to escape the situation. He made a beeping noise. "Oh that must be my crystal!" Promptly, he jumped up off the bench. "Gee! I'd better go! Bye Robbie!" He smiled at Robbie, patted him on the shoulder, and did a cartwheeling backflip that was more spastic than usual, careening over the wall. Once he was out of sight, Robbie positively melted. He slunk down onto the floor, and released a shriek resembling that of a fangirl's squeal. "I fell out of a treehouse..! INTO, SPORTAFLOP'S, ARMS?!" He released another strangled squeal. "And then he SMILED at me, and I FAINTED?! And I called him SPORTACUTE. OUT LOUD." His next marvelous noise was (yet again) definitely not human; it was an amalgamation of excitement and embarrassment. A realization stumbled into his brain. "Waitwaitwaitwaitwait he was actually SAD when I said I didn't mean it, which could ONLY MEAN THAT HE-!"

* * *

"He called me Sportacute?! And he said he didn't mean it but then he was blushing really hard?!" Sportaflop confessed to the stark white walls of his airship; he was flipping all over the place with twice as much energy as usual. At this point, he knew he was blushing too. "But now I feel REALLY BAD because I just- FAKED my crystal beeping to escape the situation because I was going to burst with glee any second! I don't think I'm supposed to do that, and I REALLY don't wanna lie to my friend...! What do I do?! How do I solve this! How do I tell him how I feel?! He looked at his clock and realized it was 8:00 at night. "OH MY GOODNESS! I didn't realize it was getting this late! I really have to go to bed! He did his nighttime routine at lightning speed and snuggled up into his bed. To his dismay, his mind raced and kept him awake. He couldn't stop thinking about Robbie, and having had no previous romantic experience, he had no idea what it could possibly mean. Deep into the night, he tossed and turned, wavering in and out of dreams and consciousness. After his long, sleepless night, the sun bounced into the sky; Sportaboi hadn't ever noticed how weirdly abrupt the change seemed, because he was never awake for it. He groaned; instead of smiling and flipping out of bed, he stretched and groggily hit the floor. "Wow, I'm only this tired during my sugar meltdowns," he commented, "insomnia really isn't my thing. I wonder why Robbie kept me up...?" He walked (WALKED!) over to his pantry, touching its opening button with a lethargic step. Every kind of sportscandy was on the wall; the sight filled Sportacus with glee, and some of his energy returned. One bite of an apple had him back to his normal flippty-floppity self. He exuberantly made himself breakfast (today, it was freshly-squeezed pineapple juice, prepared with overly too many aerobic stunts. Again.) Once he finished, his crystal flashed and beeped. "Someone's in trouble!" His guilt about yesterday momentarily returned, but he shook it off and steered his airship down to the town.

A rogue rocket careened out from behind the billboard at the edge of town, sparking and smoking. Haphazardly holding onto it was Robbie Rotten. Sportaboi noticed how his lanky silhouette looked against the shapes of the clouds, and started blushing slightly at the sweetness and hilarity of the situation. It took almost too long to realize that Robbie was propelling straight toward him. "DOOR!" he screamed, signaling it to open. He veered the blimp to the side, and with pure cartoon-logic luck, the rocket shot right through the opening. It fizzled out, landing with a THUNK on the floor. Sportabro helped Robbie to his feet. "Stupid...rocket science..!" he mumbled resentfully. Sportacus just shook his head and grinned. "I'm going to guess it's another failed invention, then?" he inquired. Robbie nodded groggily, his eyelids threatening to drop, which sparked Sporp's concern. "You really need to sleep, did you really stay up all night?" he gently chided. "No wonder the rocket didn't go as planned; that's dangerous, Robbie." Crossing his arms, the villain pouted before agreeing reluctantly. Sportaflop briefly considered taking him back down to his lair, but seeing how the poor man was stumbling around dead on his feet made him decide otherwise. He softly commanded, "Bed." It folded out from the wall, slightly startling Robbie. Sportasweet put a protective arm around his shoulders, leading him towards the safe haven of much-needed rest. He was nearly asleep before he'd even fully reached it. "You've gotta stop staying up late just so you can scheme against me, silly," Sportaboi recommended while tucking him in. Robbie groaned a little in protest, but was too tired to argue. Sportabro sighed to himself, exiting the airship to go patrol the town.(and restock his sportscandy, because his apples had ran out again.) As he was climbing down the ladder, he took another look at Robbie, in the rarity of a peaceful rest. "What is it with you and passing out in my arms?" he questioned, half-joking. Still, he couldn't ignore that he was blushing profusely at asking that out loud.

It wasn't a blue-gray periscope watching Sportacus for once. It was a pair of neon pink binoculars. Seeing that Robbie wasn't with him sparked her curiosity. She reached for her purse, pulling out her fuzzy heart diary and unclasping it. "_Dear Diary: I noticed something REALLY weird this morning. Robbie Rotten soared out of his lair on a broken rocket, straight up to Sportacus' airship. That's awfully strange, because now Sportacus just came down from his airship and Robbie wasn't with him! What happened? I have to investigate and see what's going on." _She quickly shut it, a determined expression on her face. She crouched behind a wall, listening for flippy-woosh noises. Once they quieted down, she dashed out from her hiding spot. "It's not really wrong to go in Sportacus' airship when he's not there," she convinced herself. "After all, I'm only trying to help!" She climbed the ladder carefully, but still shuddered and clung to it when it swayed in the wind. Based on past experience, she knew that the blue kangaroo would be stuck starstruck in the produce aisle for at least an hour, so she had adequate time. Once she reached the airship, she noticed immediately that something was amiss- Sportaflop's bed was down. Normally, it'd go back up; Stephanie knew how the airship worked, since she'd gotten tours on multiple occasions. She shook off the happy nostalgic thoughts and focused back on her mission. Sloooowly, slooooowly, she crept over to the bed. A snoring figure lay in it, and she could tell exactly who it was from the gelled pompadour hairstyle. "Robbie Rotten?!" she whisper-shouted, nearly forgetting to lower her voice. His expression scrunched, and he stirred a bit. Stephanie was mortified at having woken up. But still, why was he here in the first place? It was a close match, but her curiosity won over her. She stayed by the edge of the bed as Robbie woke up. "S...spor...b...sporta..baby..." he mumbled, resuming his slumber. Stephanie's eyes nearly popped out of her head; she could NOT believe it- what had she just heard?! A devilish grin infected her face. She snuck back to the exit, a plan already forming in her mind. She had to tell her friends about Robbie's crush. If it was solely up to them to get the two together, then she'd make it happen.

* * *

"_WHAT?!_ Are you serious!?"Stingy caterwauled, taken aback. Stephanie nodded vigorously; Pixel was smug, looking at a chart on his computer. "There WAS a 79% chance that Robbie would end up falling in love with him," he commented. Trixie punched the air and hissed, "Yes! Finally!" Ziggy was a little confused about the subject of love, but went with the flow anyway. Rottenella smiled, enjoying being a part of the group even after they'd figured out who she was. "I solemnly swear to not let any parts of this plan slip to Father," she promised; "after all, I'm my own person, and it would be extraordinarily fun to keep a secret." The others giggled, and they all sat around their treehouse in a circle. "Today is the launch of Project G.R.A.S.S.-" Stephanie stated matter-of-factly, "-Get Robbie and Sportacus Super-gay!" Stingy interjected. "Wouldn't that be GRASSG?" "Compound words," Stephanie retorted, which seemed to satisfy him. She launched into a passionate rant about all the evidence they could utilize to bring them together; Pixel being a thoughtful scribe, Trixie drawing out a battle plan map, Ziggy enjoying candy, Stingy absorbed in the story so the knowledge could be HIS, and Rottenella sitting with an expression more broodingly evil than Robbie's could ever be. They sat discussing their plan, absorbed so much in their thoughts, that when Sportacus popped his head up through the trapdoor and greeted them, they all nearly jumped out of their skin. "HI, Sportacus!" Trixie said gleefully, a bead of sweat dribbling down her forehead as she tried to quickly change the subject. "How's it going?" he inquired innocently, having no idea what was actually happening. The kids all replied with slightly differing responses of "Good." Noticing the little things like he always did, Stingy suddenly piped up. "Wow, that's a lot of sportscandy, Sportacus; you should really go back to your ship and put it all up!" The others nodded approvingly, trying desperately to telepathically convince him. He looked down at the copius bags strewn on his arms; he was carrying about 20 at once with no problem. "That's a good idea! And wait!" He paled. "I have to go back there to check on-!" He paused when he saw the wide eyes of the kids. "Check on the...mechanics!" he said slowly, laughing nervously. "I'd hate for it to sputter out in the sky. Gotta go, bye kids!" He didn't flip away, to make sure that his precious fruit didn't get bruised. The kids waited until he was surely gone before resuming their conversation. "Why didn't he want to tell us Robbie was up there?" Ziggy asked. Steph giddily squealed, "Because I think he has a crush on Robbie too!" Trixie was slightly skeptical. "Does Sportacus even _know_ what romantic feelings are?" she teased lightly. "Well, sure;" Rottenella added, "he likely just doesn't know how to identify them within himself." Stingy eagerly chimed in, "Which will make it even cuter when they actually fall in love!" They had a picnic in the treehouse, deviously making their matchmaking plan together all day- they even wrote another flash-mob song about it.

Meanwhile, Sportaboi returned to his ship, relieved to find that his unexpected guest was still comfy. He smiled while setting down his grocery bags and extracting his pantry-counter. He tried to QUIETLY juggle them and backflip-toss them into their slots, but it still caught the ear of the dreaming insomniac. "Hhnnnghh...dun go a..away…" he grumbled, fidgeting in his sleep. His brow furrowed and he held the pillow, whimpering slightly. Sporpaborp's heart melted. He held back from flipping when he approached him (he had to be careful not to make a sound.) Robbie was obviously having a bad dream, and Sportasweet desperately wanted to comfort him. On an emotional whim, he gingerly interlaced his fingers with Robbie's. His sleepy face eased, and he faded back into serenity, his grip tightening. A tiny smile creeped onto his face. It was hard to notice, but it was there, and it was genuine. Sportacute's eyes widened like dinner plates, brimming with moist tears. _"Heroes don't cry,"_ he thought to himself, but the sight of Robbie's peaceful face sent him over the edge. He kneeled next to the bed, a couple of happy tears spilling onto his and Robbie's linked hands. "H..heroes don't c-c-cry..." he laughed under his breath, his heart bursting.

Heroes don't fall in love with villains, either, but that wouldn't stop them.


	4. the kiddos' secret plan

Rottenella was sprawled on the fluffy orange chair, her legs dangling over the side. She was absentmindedly watching Robbie make a new contraption to ease his mind. It had been two days since the rocket incident, and it was also the day the children had chosen that they'd execute their plan. In fact, Rottenella's nonchalant laziness was actually an act of inconspicuous patrol to make sure Robbie didn't realize what was going on. However, with how scatterbrained he currently was, she could have hired a whole orchestral parade and set them loose through the town and he STILL wouldn't have noticed. Glancing at a watch that Pixel had lent her, she saw that it was 6:30 in the afternoon- sunset. The optimal time for Sportacus to be done with his last major patrol. She took note of this- any second now, her father would lose his head over Sportaboi again. She pitied his overemotional state, but knew that tonight, he'd feel better, thanks to the deviously marvelous plan she and her friends had concocted. _"Like father, like daughter,"_ she thought with a little grin. A screech interrupted her- he had reached his wit's end, and he promptly laid face-down on the floor. It was time to begin. She reached into a hidden pocket that she'd sewn into her dress while Robbie wasn't paying attention, and she flicked on the walkie-talkie that Pixel had made for the plan. "You seem as if you would benefit from a walk. As an insider to their activities, you can trust me when I say that they aren't actively busy today." She breathed in, and said the key word; "In fact, I daresay they're being _lazy_ for once." She put her hands behind her back matter-of-factly, and turned the walkie talkie back off in another swift motion now that her first step was completed. Robbie turned his head to face her, his expression brightening a bit as he registered her statement. "Also, according to the way the human body works, you do need some fresh air. Therefore, I recommend you pause your latest scheme and head up to the surface." He opened his mouth to protest, but didn't wanted to argue with a walking dictionary; the evidence stacked against him, and he silently pulled himself up and walked towards the exit hatch. He fumbled with the latch; Rottenella had conveniently coated it in a mixture of oil and butter earlier, so his hands wouldn't be able to grasp it right. The others had at least 5 minutes to get the next phase of the plan done while she stalled for time in looking for something to help clean the latch. (She'd taken into account the messy disorganization and utilized it.) Rottenella smiled smugly as she briskly strode to the closet; the first phase was in motion.

Pixel, having received the radioed message, nodded to the others; they were sitting around him eagerly, waiting for the chance to strike. Stingy grinned, cackling quietly and exiting the treehouse. He gleefully plopped into his trusty car; it had a wagon attached to it that held an overabundance of triagonal signs from his garage. Trixie hopped in the wagon too, armed and ready with her shovel. They quickly zoomed around, Trixie hurriedly digging tiny ditches and potholes, and Stingy placing signs neatly in front of each one. They were strategically placed so that Robbie would go a certain direction on his walk; the destination that they would also lead Sportaflop to. Once their task was complete, they contacted Pixel, who sent out the next wave. Ziggy immediately jumped up, a bag of taffy wrappers in one of his hands. He and Stephanie climbed down quickly, with Ziggy purposely littering the trash behind him like a Hansel and Gretel trail (mentally, he apologized to Sportaclean.) Stephanie held a note in a cylindrical tube, ready to be mailed up to the ship once the time was right. Pixel intently watched his computer; it had little icons on them that showed where each of the townspeople were. He looked at the mapped-out plan so far, and watched closely for the little chibi heads of Stephanie and Ziggy to reach the designated spot (which was a clearing to the northwest of the center of the town; an area that the kids didn't often go to, which meant it'd be safe for the encounter to happen.) They reached the spot, and they split to their own tasks; Ziggy arranged the bag under the bench and on the wall behind where Sportadude would sit, letting the sugar scent waft into the air; he returned to the clubhouse quickly once he was done. Stephanie backtracked to the beginning of the trail; the mail cannon. Another message from Rottenella came through on the walkie talkie; "Ok, he's out meandering. Mail time." Pixel signaled his pink friend to shoot it, and she did, sprinting back to the clubhouse after doing so. Pixel pulled up the live footage of the camera he'd hidden at the meeting spot, and cast the video to the projector he'd set up. Once Rottenella had sneakily escaped the lair without Robbie noticing, they all gathered around on the floor, waiting eagerly for the scene to play out.

Sportacus read aloud the sudden note that had arrived. "Dear Sportacus- follow the taffy wrappers." It didn't even have a name on it, so he was perplexed; still, he trusted the kids, and wanted to entertain them with whatever was happening. He flipped down from his airship, landing at the start of a wrapper trail. He followed it curiously; there was just enough sugary residue in the air from them to make him slightly less bouncy. He didn't flip, which made sure that Robbie wouldn't hear him coming and avoid him. The residual leaking colors of the sun, now below the horizon, sent a pastel rainbow through the air that gently gave way into night sky. He gazed at the sight, smiling at the peace that it radiated and getting distracted from the wrappers right on time. He sat down on one end of the long bench. Another person was approaching from the other side of the curvy street, also absorbed in the sky. It was a rare moment for Robbie- he was actually tranquil, his villainous theatrics melting away in the sleepy sky. Still transfixed, he sat down on the other end of the bench. (The kids all high-fived each other at their victory, and Stephanie resisted the urge to break into song.) The pale colors continued slowly giving way to twilight, and stars started appearing in the sky, one by one, lighting up the eyes of the two bench occupants. Subconsciously, Robbie's natural monologue began- another excellent observation of Rottenella put to use. "I'd never admit it," he breathed, hesitant to pierce the silence, "but the sky at this time of night is absolutely breathtaking..." Sportacus sighed a soft "Yes..." in agreement; Robbie hardly thought anything of it. They were both so relaxed (Sportacus because of the craftily-created sugar air, and Robbie because of his secret love of the sky.) Only after a couple of seconds did he wonder who replied, and he looked over to see Sportacus. "Whoa, hi, didn't see you there," he said, being too lethargic to react properly from his 2 days' worth of sleeplessness. Sportacus shifted to look at Robbie too, and giggled, slumping over on the bench. Robbie still had enough mental capacity to make sure his friend didn't hit his head. He scooted over quickly, catching Sportacus. Absentmindedly, the sports boi stretched out, resting on his lap. Finally, as if on cue at the lightly blushing face he was now gazing down at, Robbie's feelings caught up with him.

Sportababy looked so sweet and happy there, smiling softly in the light of the ultramarine sky, that he quietly burst into tears.

"Whoa whoa whoa, what's wrong?" Sportacute inquired, intently concerned. Robbie hiccuped. "You're too...pure..." he spoke softly. "I d-don't deserve you." Sportacus' heart cracked a little at hearing those words come out of his friends' mouth. He twisted a bit, reaching upwards to wipe away the tears. That only made Robbie sadder, so he wordlessly leaned down and hugged Sportaflop, his mouth agape in a silent cry. The effects of the sugar wasn't enough to win over Sportaboi's instinctive need to make people happy. He sat up, still embracing Robbie, who sniffled. "It's okay, Robbie." he reassured, rubbing his back. Eventually, he released him, holding his shoulders at arm's length. "What would make you feel like...like you don't deserve me?" Sportasweet hesitated to say the painful words again. Robbie whimpered, gathering his words before answering. "Y-you go around, always helping everyone you see," He paused, letting Sportacus wipe away a fresh tear. "A..and, and you're a-always so _supportive_ of me, and y-you always catch me w-wh-when I fall..." Robbie's breaths were ragged. Sportabro answered, "I help people. I'm a hero, it's what I do." "B-but," Robbie weakly retorted, "I'm a villain...! A-and the heroes aren't s-s-supposed to help the villains!" The expression on his face was one of helplessness. "D-do you even know why I always try to k-kick you out of Lazytown?" he asked regretfully. Sportacus shook his head solemnly, a tiny curiosity bubbling inside of him. "Y-you make me feel...e-emotion. A-and I'm a _villain!_ Villains sh-shouldn't start feeling all warm and b-bubbly inside when they see the hero. It..it'd ruin my r-reputation!" Robbie hesitated, trying not to break down again. "It...it's..._I love you..."_

He couldn't escape a fresh bout of crying when he saw Sportacus' eyes grow wider than dinner plates. "It all makes so much sense now!" the blue sports man exclaimed gleefully. Robbie shot him a look of confused frustration, tears running down his face. He hissed, "What do you mean?" Sportacute smiled radiantly, silencing him into a blushing mess. "Well, you see," he began, talking quickly and energetically, "I felt these weird feelings but I had no idea what they meant! Seeing you always just made me inexplicably happy and I just- now I know why my face always felt so hot with you around! I was worried that I was getting a fever but NO! I thought I was unhealthy when my stomach started flipping around just as much as I did but it was all just LOVE! I finally understand!" He squealed, bouncing now on the bench with the joy of a kid in a candy store (or rather, a Sportaflop in a fruit aisle.) He pulled Robbie into a bone-crushing hug, and Robbie started giggling. Giggling, of all things, with his tear-streaked face shining in the moonlight. (In their homemade theater, the kids were screeching of pure joy, tangled in a group hug.) The two sat under the moonlight for a little longer, letting it calm them back down. They remained in an embrace of silence until Sportaboi broke it. "So does this mean we're...boyfriends now?" he asked innocently. Robbie though for a second. "I mean, I guess, but it doesn't feel OFFICIALLY official," he admitted. "And I still want to make plots and schemes, please don't tell me I have to stop that!" Sportaflop chuckled heartily. "Of course not! I want you to do what makes you happy." A smile started to bloom on Robbie's face. They were both blushing and laughing nervously. "Did you hear that?" Sportacus asked, looking concernedly in the direction of the treehouse. "I thought I heard a distant shriek just now..."

It was actually six distant shrieks, to be precise, coming from six delighted children who were ecstatic at the occurring events. Six children who decided to have a celebratory sleepover in their clubhouse, and when Sporp did end up checking on them, he found them all fast asleep, snuggled up in a heap together (and all dreaming about the exact same thing.)


	5. emotional conflict TM

"DID THAT REALLY EVEN HAPPEN?" Robbie caterwauled. He was rolling on the floor, hosting a wild show of a tantrum. "WHY DID I SAY THAT? HOPEFULLY IT WAS A DREAM BECAUSE I WAS SO STUPID! WHY DID I DO THAT!" Rottenella chuckled, enjoying her popcorn- she was making the most of her situation. As he continued crying and writhing, she dragged herself out of the chair and made him a piece of cake. He looked up at her and blubbered a thank you. Due to his distraught state, he didn't notice when she exited the lair to go visit her friends. When she arrived at the soccer field, Stingy perked up, and ran towards her with a fistful of dandelions. "I found these excellent flowers that match my outfit," he began, "and even if they do not match your outfit, I still thought you'd appreciate them." His cheeks were hot as he thrusted the miniature bouquet at her. She giggled. "You're very sweet, Stingy." He was starstruck. "Hiya, Ella!" the others called to her from their haphazard circle. Stephanie scooted towards her. "Any new intel?" Rottenella shook her head. "Just another mental breakdown about what happened." Everyone chuckled sympathetically. "I wonder how Sportacus is feeling about whatever happened," Ziggy chimed in. "Yeah!" Stephanie said. "We should go check up on him." "What if he is busy with something? A flash mob would be inconvenient..." Stingy observed. "How about just one or two of us go?" Everyone agreed with him. "Ok, Stingy, since you had the idea, let's go." Rottenella invited. "M-me and you?" he stammered. Stephanie and Trixie deftly pushed him into her, yelling "Go on!" and giggling. He followed her, a look of flustered panic on his face. Trixie kicked her feet up. "I'll be perfectly honest, it's kind of sweet to see Stingy actually GIVE something to somebody." The others nodded happily.

_Shhoom!_ A mail tube shot through the opening in Sportaflop's ship. He read the brief letter aloud. "Dear Sportacus, look down below your ship." He was a little confused, but called "Door!" and peered over the edge. Two children, one adorned in yellow and one in purple, stared back up at him. "Ah! Stingy and Rottenella!" He backflipped over to his control panel and landed the ship in the clearing. The kids eagerly approached him. "Hey, how have you been doing?" they asked. "Has anything major happened lately?" Rottenella swiftly added. Sportaboi's eyes were stars. "Oh goodness! Nobody's actually asked yet, but I've felt so much more energetic in the past couple of days! I could do twice the flips I normally can! "Whoa! How come?" Stingy asked, with a mask of naivety. "Oh, it's probably too good to be true," Sporp replied wistfully. "It's just like a lot of the other dreams I've had, so it probably wan't even real." He deflated a bit. Rottenella smiled sweetly. "Aw, don't feel down about it. We're here for you!" He gazed at the children. "We're all here for you!" a certain pink child suddenly added. Four more children popped out, one by one. "Sorry to interrupt," Stephanie interrupted, "but you know me! I hate missing out on action!" Everybody laughed awkwardly, except Sportasweet. He was grinning madly. "You kids are all so wonderful!" Wiping a stray tear from his eye, he pulled them all into a group hug. They giggled and embraced him. As suddenly as it came, their sentimental moment dissipated when Stingy's stomach growled like a lion. He regally declared, "It's lunchtime!"

The kiddos all trickled back to the square, and Sportaflop pulled six apples out of seemingly nowhere. They all munched on them, talking with their mouths full. "That movie we watched the other night was wonderful," Pixel said cunningly. Everybody was a little confused; Stingy was the first to catch on. "Yes. It was a fabulous climax." The kids snickered softly beneath the gaze of the unsuspecting Sporpaborp. "I really wonder how the series is going to continue," Trixie piped up. Stephanie joined in. "After all, we're due for a sequel sometime soon!" They couldn't contain it any longer- they all burst into a bought of laughter, and their blue sports elf couldn't have been more confused. "What movie is it?" he asked innocently. The kids were gasping for breath, so they couldn't even answer. He shook his head good-naturedly and flipped away. As he did his wild acrobatics through the streets of Lazytown, autumn leaves drifted carelessly. A cool breeze ruffled the feathers of the sky. Sporp let his mind wander in the calm. Inevitably, his thoughts eventually wandered to the same infection that had been plaguing him for days- Robbie Rotten. He sighed wistfully. "Did he really mean what he said? It's been two days, sixteen hours, and thirty-four minutes since all that happened, and he hasn't said word one to me." He did a triple backflip with a twist in midair, landing in a somersault. "Gosh, if only I could tell somebody how much this is eating me up inside!" He flippity-flopped back up into his airship to soothe his mind with some sportscandy. "Badminton racket! Pineapple! Apple! Orange!" As the racket shot out, he caught it in midair. Quickly, he skinned the pineapple with the neck of the racket, then sliced it by hitting it. The orange shot out next, and he caught it on his fingertip. It spun like a basketball; his nail drilled a hole in it. He bounced it with the racket and the peels bloomed into five neat pieces. Another hit and the orange cracked from the force, the slices falling into the bowl with the pineapples. He tossed the apple in the air, slicing it with the edge of the racket. Everything was perfectly laid out in the bowl, in a matter of ten seconds. Spoob called for a fork and took solace in his favorite foods.

The town's number one villain was down in his lair. He wasn't cooking up a new scheme- he had no ideas for new plans because his feelings kept bogging his mind. Because of his villainy writer's block, he was enjoying his second favorite activity- sewing. Rottenella was tinkering on her old music box absentmindedly. She was briefly interrupted by Robbie's yelp of "GAH! Ella, I need some DEADLY ABYSS BLUE thread! I accidentally got CREEPY FOREST GREEN and that just won't do!" Rottenella laughed, retrieving the correct thread. "Remind me again," she sarcastically remarked, 'why exactly you need this to be blue? I thought that you liked purple the most..." She grinned mischievously, while her father blushed profusely. "Don't...ugh! You KNOW who it's for..." he grumbled, obviously flustered. Rottenella cackled happily, and they both went back to their work. Robbie hunched his shoulders to where she couldn't see him, concealing his smile from her attentive eyes. Why on earth was he genuinely SMILING so much?! This was extremely unnatural for a VILLAIN! Robbie, having finished his creation, promptly went up to the surface, and sent up an airmail to Sportagreat with his new creation inside. Later that day, everyone was sitting around the clearing, Sportacus beaming at his new gift. Robbie watched on anxiously through his periscope. "Where'd ya get that fresh new shirt, Sportacus?" Trixie asked. "It came in the airmail while I was eating lunch! I have no idea who sent it, but I love it!" Stingy inspected the thread. "Expert craftsmanship...this embroidery is on point. It was a great choice to write "Hey now, you're an all star" on it- that song is excellent." He grinned. "Whoever made this worked very hard on it, and must care about you a lot." Looking on at the situation, Robbie's face was aglow. He launched back from his periscope, giggling more exuberantly than Stephanie. He was too busy being excited that he didn't notice when Sportabro realized something crucial. "There's only one person in Lazytown who knows how to sew this well. Maybe it wasn't a dream?"

_Knock, knock, knock. _"I'll get it," Rottenella declared. Robbie grumbled and turned over- he was curled up in his fluffy orange chair with his favorite purple blankie, trying to catch a nap after his wild bout of excitement. When Ella approached the hatch, the sight of who was there was startling. "SPO- ahem- Sp..lendid to see you!" She opened the hatch door and beckoned him inside. "Um, Father, you have a visitor," she stated nervously. He protested, "But I'm...COMFY." "I'm sorry, I'll come back later," Sportaboi politely responded. "BWAAAH?! WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE SPORTAFLIPPITYFLOP-!" Robbie flailed in surprise, tangled in his blankie, and his chair began to precariously tip backwards. Sportafast yelped, and zoomed over to catch Robbie. He quickly caught the back of the chair, but also threw an arm across Robbie to protect him instinctively. They both took a moment to realize what had happened. Their eyes widened, their cheeks flushed, and the air sizzled. Sportacute tilted the chair back up to its normal position, but very slowly- to savor the moment. "Are you okay...?" he quietly asked. "Thanks to you," Robbie breathed. Ella watched on dreamily. It took a second for the boys to come to their senses. "Wait, why did you come here in the first place, Sportaflop?" "Oh! Well! Um...!" The epitome of confidence, Sportahero, stammered and hesitated. "Do you remember what happened between us a couple of days ago?" Robbie was flustered. He tried to bury himself within his blankie. Softly, Sportacus added, "Please tell me it wasn't a dream..." Robbie looked up, puzzled, but eyes shining with hope. "It wasn't..." Sporp perked up a bit. "I'd apologize for what I said, because it must have been unbelievable to hear, but I...I don't actually want to apologize." He noticed his arm still draped across Robbie, but he didn't move it. In the smallest voice imaginable, he murmured, "I'm not sorry for telling the truth." The number one villain, Robbie Rotten, blushed profusely, and let himself fall in love.


End file.
